1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to truss structures of the honeycomb type.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A number of honeycomb structures are known that may be used as support walls, building enclosures and roofs. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,642,566 issued Feb. 15, 1972 to Figge and U.S. Pat. No. 3,645,333 issued Feb. 29, 1972 to Figge illustrate a truss structure having tetrahedron-shaped elements. U.S. Pat. No. 3,849,237 issued Nov. 19, 1974 to Zetlin and U.S. Pat. No. 3,906,571 issued Sept. 23, 1975 to Zetlin disclose structures having tetrahedron-shaped modular sections made of sheet metal that are bonded together. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 3,914,486 issued Oct. 21, 1975 to Borgford discloses a structure made of three-sided half cubes that are interconnected by their bases.
Another U.S. Pat. No. 2,481,046 issued Sept. 6, 1949 to Scurlock discloses a structure similar to that of Borgford, in which the three-sided half cubes are embodied by tetrahedrons or four-sided pyramids.
The primary disadvantage of many prior art structures is that they are difficult to mold and thus are expensive to manufacture. Another disadvantage is that they often may be made only in sheets, and cannot be easily formed or bent into other shapes.
A disadvantage of the more light weight prior art truss structures is that they are not real strong and cannot be twisted or compressed without damage to the structure. Stresses placed at one point of such structures are not adequately distributed throughout the structure, resulting in structural failures.